Eastlake Dresser Makeover

1900's Eastlake Dresser

This lovely Eastlake mahogany dresser dates back to the early 1900's. While it's nearly impossible to trace its origins, it's not too hard to figure out that this piece is made of high quality mahogany with beautiful raised panels of rosewood which complements the reddish tone of the mahogany. (Unfortunately, I can't find the "before" photo for this dresser, or I would have put it in this blog post. )

We purchased this dresser at Materials Unlimited, in Ypsilanti. It was down in the basement in the farthest corner, behind some tall old boards. We almost overlooked it with all the clutter in front of it.

It was a miracle that this dresser hadn't fallen completely apart, considering the extent of damage it had withstood over a century. I can assure you, it didn't look like this when Jim pulled it away from the basement wall. It had broken sides, drawers and a cracked back. It required a lot of restructuring and elbow grease before it could be refinished, but it was well worth it.

It is easy for a trained eye to spot quality furniture, but with these five easy guidelines, anyone can do it. Here a few pointers to look for when deciding whether or not to have an item of furniture restored and reasons why restoration is a good choice.

1. How are the bones? A good "bone" structure with minor damage is worth refinishing. If the piece is damaged to the point where there is more replacement wood than original wood, while still usable, it may not as valuable. Check for major cracks or deep scratches on the larger sections of a piece of furniture, as these may affect the amount of work required to bring it back to life.

Dining Room Table

Duncan Phyfe Dining Table

A large dining room table is one of the most challenging of all furniture restoration jobs, due to the sheer size of the project. Tables are large, heavy and difficult to transport, not to mention all that surface takes a while to strip, sand and refinish. That's why tables are amongst the highest price items when it comes to refinishing cost, but personally, I still prefer a large table to a set of chairs with spindles! Don't get me started on spindles. They're lovely, indeed, but they require a LOT of patience and time.

This lovely mahogany dining room table was quite large to begin with, plus it had two 12" leaves that also needed refinishing. This table had a few surface scratches, luckily they weren't too deep so I was able to sand them away, leaving the table's surface as good as new and ready to accept the stain, for which I chose mahogany, to match the wood. Once restored to its former beauty, this table took its place in the dining room, ready to serve up many family meals for years to come.

Tea Cart Repair

Tea Cart Before

Tea Cart After

This lovely antique tea cart was in need of a broken wheel repair along with refinishing the lower shelf which had seen its share of scratches and wear. Evidently a caretaker who takes care of the owner's ninety-one year old mother had somehow tipped over the cart, breaking the wheel into several pieces.

Made of maple, this tea cart had a gorgeous finish, which I strived hard to maintain while refinishing it. The wheel, however, was a bit of a challenge as it needed to be completely rebuilt.

Using a section of wood that looked close to the original wheel, we were able to make a template of the unbroken wheel, then cut out a brand new one with a scroll saw. The outside of the wheel had to be carved out with a lathe, so that the rubber gasket could be wrapped around it as it had been originally. The finished, repaired tea cart was as good as new and ready to be used for another one hundred plus years.